1. Swansea City sign Ecuador’s World Cup star Jefferson Montero.
The 24-year old winger who starred for Ecuador in the recently concluded World Cup in Brazil, Jefferson Montero, has been signed by English Premier League club Swansea City from the Mexican club Morelia. It’s a four year deal for Montero, who is Swansea City’s sixth signing so far this season after Bafétimbi Gomis, Marvin Emnes, Stephen Kingsley, Lukasz Fabianski and Gylfi Sigurdsson. The transfer fee is said to be close to 4 million pounds. Montero has played 43 matches for his country so far and replaces Pablo Hernandez, who is set to leave Swansea City.
2.Tottenham Hotspur sign Michael Vorm and Ben Davies
Mauricia Pochettino, the new manager of the London club Tottenham Hotspur has begun his job with a signing spree this summer. This time, he signed Michael Vorm as his second choice goalkeeper behind Hugo Lloris from Swansea City for 4.5 million pounds. This is in addition to the signing of Ben Davies for the left back position, also from Swansea. The Davies deal was done as a swap as Gylfi Sigurdsson moves from Tottenham to Swansea. The swap deal is reported to be worth 10 million pounds.
It will be hard for goalkeeper Vorm to establish himself at Tottenham as Hugo Lloris is the undisputed number one choice for Pochettino, so it seems that the talented goalkeeper is set for a long time on the bench. But this may change if Tottenham decide to sell Lloris to a bigger European club for a huge sum. Tottenham routinely sell their best players, having earlier sold Luka Modric to Real Madrid and more famously, Gareth Bale, also to Real Madrid, for a world record 86 million pounds.
3. James Milner to stay put at Manchester City
There has been a lot of speculation about the talented England player James Milner’s future at the defending champions of the English Premier League, Manchester City. Manager Manuel Pellegrini had used Milner sparingly in the championship winning season, and Milner, it was rumored, was upset at his bit part status at England’s top club. But after fresh consultations with his manager, Milner has decided to fight it out and hope for a more regular spot in this year’s campaign for the Manchester club.
Interestingly, Milner is into the last year of his contract with Manchester City, which could make him a free agent next season if his new contract talks with the club fail. There are several EPL clubs who would love to have Milner in their team, and where he would have a much better chance of getting a start in every match of the season.
4. Stoke City sign Barcelona’s former rising star.
In a deal which can only be noted for the sharp downswing in the personal fortune of a player who was once said to be a replacement for Lionel Messi at Barcelona, perennial relegation candidates Stoke City have announced the signing of the Spanish international striker Bojan Krkic from Barcelona on a four year deal. KrKic is still only 23 years old and was a part of Barcelona’s first time as far back as in 2007, but his performance for the Spanish giants pales in comparison to the other great players there. He then suffered two disappointing seasons at the Italian club FC Roma, and then a short loan spell at AC Milan, before finally settling for some much needed EPL experience at Stoke City.
Stoke City manager, Mark Hughes was jubilant at the signing, saying, “He’s desperate to prove himself in the Premier League and we’re pleased to be able to offer him that platform.” The twitter account of the club came out with the tweet: “#HolaBojan Stoke City are delighted to confirm the signing of BoKrkic from FCBarcelona on a 4-year deal”
5. Finally, Barcelona sign a defender!
Spanish giants Barcelona are never known to sign defenders, preferring to make big money moves for strikers and attacking midfielders instead. This time though, Luis Enrique, the new Barcelona manager decided to strengthen his defense, signing the 30-year old French defender Jérémy Mathieu from Valencia for a reported £16m on a four year deal.
This is a record signing for a defender over the age of 30. Mathieu is Barcelona’s fifth signing so far this summer after Claudio Bravo, Marc-Andréter Stegen, Ivan Rakitic and most famously, the much criticized Luis Suarez.
